Yankees' Juan Soto Wins Prestigious Juan Marichal Award
By Narciso Placencia
October 24, 2024
New York Yankees outfielder Juan Soto has been named the recipient of the 2024 Juan Marichal Award, the highest baseball honor bestowed in the Dominican Republic. The award, which recognizes the best Dominican player in Major League Baseball, adds another milestone to Soto's remarkable season that includes leading the Yankees to their first World Series appearance in 15 years.
Like the past few years on the birthdate of the first Dominican Hall of Fame inductee, Juan Marichal, the New York Yankees’ distinguished outfielder Juan Soto, has been bestowed with the 2024 Juan Marichal Award. This recognition, designating excellence among Dominican players in Major League Baseball (MLB), speaks to the incredible year Soto has had in 2024 and carrying the Yankees to the fall classic. Soto finished the 2024 season establishing personal records with 41 homeruns and leading the American League with 128 runs scored, to go along with 109 runs batted in and a career-optimal on-base plus slugging percentage (OPS) of .989 exemplify his excellence throughout the season.
He was chosen among the other four finalists that included Emmanuel Clase of the Cleveland Guardians, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. of the Toronto Blue Jays, Marcell Ozuna of the Atlanta Braves and José Ramírez also of the Cleveland Guardians. The selection process, done through the voting of the sports writers, shows Soto received 64% of the first-place votes and accumulating a total of 492 points making him the winner. The other finalists finished as follows, José Ramírez received 293 points, followed by his teammate Clase with 251 points, Ozuna who received 217 points and Guerrero Jr. who garnered 162 points.
Upon receiving this distinction, Soto articulated his perspective during the American League Championship Series Game 5 press conference, where he had subsequently contributed a decisive three-run home run in extra innings in Cleveland granting the Yankees a trip to the World Series. "I believe it is an honor for any player to receive this award and get this recognition, the Juan Marichal Award," Soto said during the above-mentioned press conference.
Living legend and Hall of Fame inductee Juan Marichal, the award's namesake, via a Press Release endorsed and acknowledged Soto's extraordinary seasonal performance. He stated, “I am very happy about this choice because it is a system where media members vote and I believe they chose the right person, as Juan Soto has had an extraordinary year.” Marichal also congratulated all the Dominican players that were part of this season saying, “I also want to congratulate all the Dominican baseball players, because they put our country in high esteem this season.” The trophy is believed to be personally presented to Soto at a ceremony expected to take place in December as the prior awards have traditionally been presented.
Juan Soto is the fourth recipient of the award since the award's establishment in 2021, joining an elite group of Dominican athletes including Vladimir Guerrero Jr.(3B/1B) the first recipient in 2021, Sandy Alcántara (SP) in 2022, and Marcell Ozuna(OF) last year. The timing of this recognition is particularly noteworthy as Soto approaches free agency in 2025, with projections suggesting potential compensation exceeding $600 million, which would be in accordance to the recent trends in professional baseball contracts.
The broader context of this achievement reflects the Dominican Republic's continued prominence as one of the primary sources of international talent in MLB, surpassing other significant contributing countries like (including) Venezuela, Puerto Rico, Mexico and Japan, the latter having the biggest rise in prominent players in recent history. Soto's accomplishment reinforces his position as a prominent representative of Dominican Republic’s baseball culture and athletic heritage, exemplifying the nation's sustained influence in MLB as well as paving the way for the next generation of Dominican baseball players.
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